LCTA members, please contact our local State Senators and the Speaker of the House and ask them restore funding to the Joint Senate-House Infrastructure Appropriations Subcommittee for the Eastern Iowa Trail system (Cedar Valley Nature Trail).”
Your message (email or phone) could say:
“Dear Senator/Speaker – As you are aware, the Black Hawk, Johnson and Linn County Conservation Boards had made a request to the Joint Senate-House Infrastructure Appropriations Subcommittee for the Eastern Iowa Trail system (Cedar Valley Nature Trail). The subcommittee included $3 million in their budget allocation for the trail system. I understand that the Senate passed the bill with this funding included. However, we recently learned that the House stripped and removed this trail funding from the bill that passed the House.
This funding is critical to allow us to make key trail connections in the corridor. Please urge your Senate colleagues on the conference committee to support reinstatement of this funding for the Eastern Iowa Trail system. Thank you for your support and any help you are able to provide.”
Contact information for the Linn County Senators is below:
Senator Liz Mathis – [email protected]
Senator Wally Horn – [email protected]
Senator Rob Hogg – [email protected]
Senate Switchboard (515)281-3371
Speaker of the House Kraig Paulsen – [email protected]
Speaker Paulsen’s Office:(515)-281-3521
House Switchboard:(515)281-3221
I have left a voice mail and sent an e-mail to Speaker Paulsen, please let us know in the comments what kind of response you get from your representatives.
I had emailed each of the above names.
Thank you,
Steve Doty
Here’s the email I sent to the people you suggested. I’ll let you know if I hear back from anybody.
I am writing to urge your support of a conference committee compromise to reinstate $3 million for trail development in Eastern Iowa. It is short-sighted to reduce spending by cutting this appropriation.
An appropriation for recreational trails ought to be considered an investment in economic development, just as tax credits and tax breaks for businesses are considered an investment; and much more than $3 million is spent in tax credits and tax breaks.
In addition to looking for well-funded schools, well-funded public safety, and excellent health care, people who run businesses and young people who work for businesses are looking to locate in areas with significant recreational options such as hiking/biking trails. Since my retirement, I have been riding these trails in Linn, Johnson, and Black Hawk Counties several times a week at various times during the day. I can testify that the trails get a lot of use at all times of day in all kinds of weather. It was actually quite surprising to me to see how much they are used.
I think it is a mistake to “cut off your nose to spite your face”; and I would urge you to move the conference committee in the right direction.
Here’s the response from Senator Mathis. It looked like quite a few people emailed her.
All,
Thank you for your emails about trails funding. Senate Democrats are certainly supportive and did their work to get funding in the bill. Please contact members of the House (GOP) to let them know how important this is as we go to conference committee!
Liz
I heard back from Wally Horn:
Thank you for your message on trails. We are at that point of session where two views of budget matters come head to head. The Senate had these trails in their budget proposal and the House took the funding out. Now the bill is back in the Senate. As I see it, the bill will probably end up in Conference Committee where the Senate Democrats will work to get this trail money back in the bill..
My suggestion is that you make your case with the House Republicans and the Governor. We will be doing what we can here.
Thanks again for your message and please continue to contact me with your concerns.
Senator Wally Horn